Homeless veterans bring life to the stage in ‘Truly Dually’: Musical shows hardships and challenges they face living on the streets
Las Vegas Review–
Jeff Northrup is a homeless veteran and a recovering alcoholic who was prescribed anti-anxiety medication. He’s been living in shelters and on the streets of Las Vegas for 10 years. He’s tried to get his life together, only to return to the veterans shelter three times.
But this weekend, for a few hours, he’ll be a star.
Northrup and six other homeless veterans are bringing their real life experiences to the stage at the U.S. VETS — Las Vegas production of “Truly Dually,” a musical about the hardships and challenges faced by people just like them.
“I’m trying to turn my life around,” said Northrup, who as Park Man plays the starring role in the 1-hour, 45-minute production at the West Las Vegas Theatre.
An audition notice seeking actors for the play was posted at the U.S. VETS shelter downtown. The homeless veterans then spent more than two months rehearsing with a cast of community actors and members of the U.S. VETS staff under the direction of Tara Unger, a U.S. VETS intern and graduate of the Las Vegas Academy of the Performing Arts.
“It all came together just as I had visualized it. We had fabulous camaraderie,” Northrup, a 48-year-old Navy veteran, said after a preview of the musical Thursday night.
Written by Michael Ullman, who holds a doctorate in social welfare, the two-act play features 25 scenes and 19 songs. With no musical training or background as a lyricist, his inspiration for the script came from his experience working at a homeless shelter in Honolulu in 2005.
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